Terrazza

The morning after my epic dinner at Glass Brasserie with Fashion Obsessed Girl, Kulinary Adventures of Kath was in the mood for another foodie date and so we made plans for a ‘small’ Sunday lunch on our side of the bridge. It’s so nice having foodie friends! 🙂

Kath is fond of Italian food and suggested Terrazza, an Italian wood-fired pizza restaurant on the still relatively new Concourse area in Chatswood. It was packed and busy for Sunday lunch, but with a booking made earlier in the week, we had a lovely table overlooking the Concourse area. The plastic sheets were hung up around what would be the sunny outdoor-seating area, but they were up so that the heat from the outdoor heaters didn’t escape.

That above is a photo at the end of our lunch, past 2.30 pm, when the restaurant was mostly deserted 😛

I had already looked through the lunch menu online and suggested sharing a few dishes. Kath was more than happy with my suggestions and once we ordered for the food to arrive all at once we sat back and chatted while we waited. Service was swift, efficient and polite over lunch. When our food arrived we were told that the kitchen had accidentally made us a large pizza instead of the small we had ordered, but that they would only charge us for the small, which was nice of them to say at the start. We wouldn’t have been able to tell, otherwise!

The Arancini Siciliani ($12.90) were gorgeously crunchy Sicilian Risotto balls filled with mozzarella and parmesan cheeses, topped with Napoletana sauce. Breaking open the crustily-fried outside to a soft centre filled with perfectly cooked risotto was an experience in itself.

Despite the crispy edge, the wafer-thin bottom was a little softer and made it much easier to eat in a refined manner with a knife and fork. The toppings were fresh and moreish, with tender prosciutto that had a ham-like texture rather than prosciutto that’s usually quite chewy and dry.

I had read about their Gnocchi Gorgonzola ($24.90) and was intrigued. Hand-made potato dumplings in a rich and creamy gorgonzola sauce, the sauce definitely had a distinct gorgonzola aroma and taste but to Kath and I’s relief, wasn’t overwhelming.

Soft, little bite-sized pillows of potato goodness. We mostly ate this first as the cheese sauce did congeal a little as it got cold.

We had almost finished all of our food but were eyeing up the desserts and decided that we probably ‘might’ be able to squeeze in the Cannoli with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream. This isn’t on the usual Beverage & Desserts menu online as it was a special, but from memory it was about $10.

The entirety of the warm plate had been beautifully dusted with icing sugar. The two crisp cannoli shells were filled, one with a lemon cream and the other with a chocolate cream – the chocolate one was definitely the favourite between the two of us. Kath just had a taste of the vanilla ice cream but I wolfed it down happily. Generously speckled with vanilla bean seeds, the gelato was deliciously light and creamy – the perfect way to end a meal!

Definitely a must-try for quality Italian in the ‘burbs. They are open in the afternoons as well between lunch and dinner so I may see if I can pop in on a weekend afternoon for some coffee and to savour that amazing cannoli again.

I’ve been meaning to try that place for aaaages! I think I’ll have to rustle up a few guys to come along with me – as much as I love pizza, I don’t think I’m going to be able to do a metre long pizza with just one other!

Agree with Fiona – Via Napoli is my pick for Italian on the North Shore! I love that there’s more options than the usual Chinese fare in Chatswood though – the Concourse is a great area, with such great restaurants.

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I'm Cath at Confessions of a Glutton. I'm a cheesecake-devouring, sushi-craving, ramen-obsessed, salted-caramel-lover who is also a dance fitness instructor and a solicitor, living in the Northern Suburbs of the glorious city that is Sydney, Australia. These are my ramblings.